Guiding questions and discussion leaders

The weekly guiding questions for your reading log will be posted below. You can find the reading log template here.

You can also find below the discussion leader for each class. The discussion leader requirements can be found here. Some classes will have two discussion leaders. In those cases, both of you will pose discussion questions during class. You do not have to coordinate or work together in your preparation.

9/12: Ethics of using the internet for psychology research

Discussion leader: Sarah Riley

Does it make sense to apply principles of research ethics to online research, given that these principles were established well before online research was possible? Or should we start completely from scratch, and have a separate set of principles for online research?
The vast majority of data online is originally collected by private companies who use that data to make their products better serve the company’s goals. How should we think about scientific researchers making use of this data? Do researchers have a right to use that data? Should companies be held to the same ethical standards as science research?
Who do you believe is at fault in the Cambridge Analytica scandal? Is it the scientist who conducted the experiment? The people who run Cambridge Analytica? Facebook? The government? (And which ones?)

9/19: Emotion expression

Discussion leader: Josh Black

What are reasons (from a psychological perspective) people might post emotionally other than their actual emotions? Is the disconnect between emotional experience and emotion expression more pronounced online than it is offline? How should this impact how we make sense of emotional expressions online, and our ability to apply them to offline behavior?
In general, what types of emotional experiences are better-studied online than offline, and why? Provide examples.
From Goldenberg: “Digital emotion contagion should be understood as mediated emotion contagion…the goals of digital media companies that serve as its mediators may influence the way digital emotion contagion unfolds.” In general, do you think that the role of third parties in mediating emotion expression (and other psychological processes) is more pronounced online than it is offline? Why or why not? How can we account for these mediators when studying human behavior online?

10/3: Curiosity and information seeking

Discussion leader: Kyara Ralliford

Do you think that the internet makes us more or less curious? In both online settings and offline ones. Has the nature of human curiosity changed since the internet became widespread?
Psychology research often makes a distinction between (more temporary) states and (more persistent) traits. Do you think curiosity is more state-like online than offline, or is it similar in both contexts? Why or why not, and how might it change in each context?
What are reasons one might search for information online? How does the way you search for information online change depending on what your goal is? How does the structure of online resources impact how people use them to achieve those goals?

10/10: Collective memory

Discussion leader: Victor Fernandez

What types of things do you think we as a society are most likely to remember and are most likely to forget, and why? How does the internet influence what gets remembered and forgotten?
How has the way we’ve catalogued information changed? In the past 300 years, or even in the past 20? What are the implications of those changes for how we use data to make sense of psychological processes, such as collective memory, throughout history?
What does collective memory look like when people have different perceptions or evaluations of the person/event that is being remembered? How might those dueling collective memories play out, both offline and online?

10/31: Nudging and decision-making

Discussion leader: Estelle Cai and Jimmy Ahn

Think about this quote from Lorenz-Spreen et al.: “Because user satisfaction is not necessarily in line with the goals of algorithms—to maximize user engagement and screen time—algorithmic curation often deprives users of autonomy. For instance, feedback loops are created that can artificially reinforce preferences, and recommender systems can eliminate context in order to avoid overburdening users.” How do online platforms use nudges to reinforce our preferences? What are the implications of artificially reinforcing our preferences? Is it a good or a bad thing?
Do you think the internet gives people more choice/control than other types of media, or is this merely a “heightened illusion of choice”, as Wu et al., says?
What are the features of the one sec app that you think made it effective in the Gruning study? Is there a way to make use of those features in other ways in the online world?

11/7: Misinformation and disinformation

Discussion leaders: Carolyn Brodsky and Andre Williams

Is misinformation an internet-specific problem? Does the internet make it worse, or are our concerns overblown?
When trying to stop the spread of misinformation, is it better to target beliefs or behaviors? Why?
What do you think are the most important factors in determining whether someone will believe misinformation? These can be person-specific factors (i.e. traits) or situational factors (i.e. political/social contexts).

11/14: Mental health

Discussion leaders: Sofia Castro and Alba Renteria Enriquez

What role do you think the internet/social media play in adolescent mental health? Is it a primary cause, a small contributing factor along with other factors, or unrelated/a moral panic? Explain.
This week’s papers, and most of the discussion about social media and mental health, is about adolescents. Do you think the way social media impacts mental health differs between adults and adolescents? Why?
Do you think the widespread availability of information about mental health online, or how people talk about mental health online, plays a role in this debate? Similarly, do you think the online world can be leveraged to assist people in seeking help with their mental health?

11/21: Artificial intelligence

Discussion leaders: Dylan Farley and Shan He

Do you agree that the attitudes highlighted in the De Freitas article (summarized in Table 2) are the most important factors in explaining attitudes towards artificial intelligence (AI) and Large Language Models (LLMs)? What is a factor that you think is missing? How would you fill in the table (Barriers, Interventions, Risks) for that factor?
As AI develops, is it desirable to design it to be more and more human-like, or more and more “perfect”/error-free? Similarly, do we care if AI has human-like responses, but very unhuman-like “thought” processes that lead to those responses?
Are you convinced by the Costello article that a potential use of LLMs is to reduce belief in conspiracy theories? How might a tool like this be used in the real world?

12/5: Humor/Activism

Discussion leaders: Cici Zhao and Errol Haase